# CVE-2026-22188: Panda3D denial of service via unbounded stack allocation in deploy-stub

Source: https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-22188-panda3d-denial-of-service-via-unbounded-stack-allocation-in  
Publisher: Junglewise Threat Intelligence, https://junglewise.ai/threats  
Published: 2026-01-07. Updated: 2026-05-26  
License: CC BY 4.0 with a link back

CVE-2026-22188 · Severity: medium · CVSS 5.5 · Published 2026-01-07

Panda3D is an open-source game engine used for 3D rendering and game development. A vulnerability in its deployment component allows a local user to crash the application by providing an excessive number of command-line arguments. This can lead to a denial-of-service condition, preventing the software from starting or operating correctly.

Technologies: [Cmu Panda3d](https://junglewise.ai/threats/technologies/panda3d). Vendors: [Cmu](https://junglewise.ai/threats/vendors/cmu).

## Quick answers

**Is CVE-2026-22188 exploited in the wild?** No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2026-22188 being exploited in the wild.

**How severe is CVE-2026-22188?** Medium severity, with a CVSS score of 5.5, published 7 January 2026.

**Which products and versions are affected?** Panda3D Panda3D up to and including 1.10.16.

**Is there a fix for CVE-2026-22188?** No fixed version is recorded yet. Check the vendor's advisory in the references below. If you run it, Junglewise drafts a mitigation that fits your setup and applies it once you approve, with senior security engineers behind it.

**How is CVE-2026-22188 attacked?** It is attacked with local access, in a software library.

**Am I affected by CVE-2026-22188?** Check whether you run Cmu Panda3d. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

## Technical details

A vulnerability exists in the deploy-stub component of Panda3D (up to v1.10.16) due to the use of the alloca() function with unvalidated input. Specifically, the executable allocates memory for argv_copy and argv_copy2 based directly on the attacker-controlled argc (argument count) value. By supplying a very large number of command-line arguments, a local attacker can trigger stack exhaustion. This leads to the propagation of uninitialized stack memory into the Python interpreter's initialization routines, causing a reliable crash (DoS) and undefined behavior. The issue has been verified using MemorySanitizer (MSAN) as a use-of-uninitialized-value originating from stack memory.

## Affected products

- Panda3D Panda3D up to and including 1.10.16

## Timeline

- 2026-01-01: disclosed: Initial disclosure on Full Disclosure mailing list
- 2026-01-07: advisory: NVD and VulnCheck advisory published

## References

- [https://github.com/panda3d/panda3d](https://github.com/panda3d/panda3d)
- [https://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2026/Jan/9](https://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2026/Jan/9)
- [https://www.panda3d.org/](https://www.panda3d.org/)
- [https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/panda3d-deploy-stub-stack-exhaustion-via-unbounded-alloca](https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/panda3d-deploy-stub-stack-exhaustion-via-unbounded-alloca)

## Related threats

- [Panda3D egg-mkfont format string vulnerability in -gp option](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-22190-panda3d-egg-mkfont-format-string-vulnerability-in-gp-option)
- [Panda3D egg-mkfont stack buffer overflow in glyph pattern processing](https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-2026-22189-panda3d-egg-mkfont-stack-buffer-overflow-in-glyph-pattern)